


Understanding

by ArceusTheCat



Category: Runescape (Video Games)
Genre: Environmentalism, Gen, Kinda, Self-Indulgent, Songfic, The player worships Guthix
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-02
Updated: 2018-11-02
Packaged: 2019-08-16 15:47:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16498442
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArceusTheCat/pseuds/ArceusTheCat
Summary: A cat and adventurer on their shared path talk about the world around them. They are different from the rest and yet the same.





	Understanding

**Author's Note:**

> This is a stream-of-consciousness style story, written to Understanding from OSRS, or the nature runecrafting altar theme. It's pretty self-indulgent since I've been feeling bad about the current environmental situation, eh heh...
> 
> Guthix needs more love, my dudes!

I knew ever since I was a kitten that my human was strange. They dressed in simple brown rags while the other humans around them had clothes and armor all colors of the rainbow. When I asked them, “Why do you look different from the other humans?” they responded with “I have no need for vanity.”

I didn’t know what vanity meant, so they elaborated.

“I am happy with the way I am. I do not need anything more than what I have, so why should I waste time gathering money for fancy clothes?”

I nodded and they smiled at me. They picked me up and hugged me close, scratching behind my ears at the best possible spot.

“Because I am free, I have time to spend like this.”

They travelled all across the world, from mountains to ice floes to tropical rainforests to beautiful rivers. Whenever my paws tied on our journey, they’d pick me up and let me rest in their arms or bag. I loved the adventures we went on. One day we’d help a town with a monster infestation and the next we’d fish by the sea. I noticed that the human never fished or hunted or really did anything as much as the others did. I asked, “Why don’t we fish more?” They responded with “Because if we caught all the fish today, there would be none for tomorrow.”

My human was so wise. They could get more fish or kebbits or gold by fishing, hunting or fighting for longer, but they never did. They knew that these things would be there tomorrow if they didn’t kill them all today.

I saw that they always talked silently before eating. I was curious, so I asked, “Why do you do that?” They answered, “I am thanking Guthix for the life I am taking to continue living.”

“Who is Guthix?”

“He is a god of this world, one of many that shape everything we see. He is responsible for all the life we see. He grows the trees, fish, animals and everything else we depend on. He also makes sure that things keep in balance, so that we can have as many tomorrows as we want. I know he does not need the thanks, but I offer it anyway. It is better to be humble and thankful for the gifts you are given.”

The sparkle in their eyes was more than enough to tell me that they admired Guthix. I wondered if I could meet him someday.

“But listen well, dear cat. I am not perfect. Indeed, nobody is. There cannot be life without death. That is the way of nature and Guthix. I knew this and yet when I saw you huddled under a shed in the rain, I knew I had to save you.”

“Why? I’m glad that you did, but why?”

“I, too, am greedy like the other humans. I was lonely on my travels. I know that is stupid to think, because no matter where I go, life is all around me… but I still wanted more. When I saw you suffering I selfishly defied fate to gain a companion.”

“Greedy…? But how…? You are nothing like the other humans!”

The human chuckles.

“Just because I take less than the others does not mean I am safe from greed. That is why I thank Guthix as many times as I can in a day. I hope to atone for my greed by showing my thanks for what I have.”

It was then that I began to understand my human. They were indeed human, not the demigod I made them to be in my mind. Still, I couldn’t help but feel like my human was the best one out there. They only took what they needed and always offered their thanks for what they took.

“I wish that more humans could live like I do… but it is human nature to be different. Unique. Independent. If we were all the same, it would be dreadful.”

“But why? If everyone lived like you, the planet would be healthier!”

“Yet we would stagnate. There are ways to live even more efficiently than I do that we have yet to learn. If we must damage our home to get to that point, then so be it. A harsher tomorrow for the sake of an even greater day after tomorrow than today is worth it. We must improve and to do so we must be different.”

No, my human is too complicated to figure out so quickly. I didn’t mind, though. They always say that we have so many more tomorrows to look forward to.

We continued our nomadic life and met all kinds of creatures. Some of them didn’t like us, so we left them alone, but there were many others just as curious about us as we were about them. I especially like the gnomes. They looked like half-sized humans, but they lived with nature instead of against it. I could tell my human liked them too and would always help out whenever they had a problem. Most of the time it was as simple as finding a lost child in the woods. Seems like gnome children are just as curious and troublesome as human children! It was fun to explore these places in search of them, so it wasn’t that bad.

“A day may come when I have no more tomorrows to share with you, but please do not despair. I have simply returned the life that I have taken back to the planet and Guthix.”

That struck me as especially odd. Aren’t humans supposed to have more tomorrows than cats? If anything, I should be the one consoling them! I soon understood why. The human grew slow and ill. I could see them wasting away but never once did the fond glimmer in their eyes leave.

“I am sorry, dear cat. My time has come. I hope that you find another one to call your own. Life is not isolated. We all depend on each other. We all need somebody to keep us company on our journey.”

They gave me a scratch in my favorite spot, though I could tell from their wince that it hurt them to do so. Apparently as their body slowed down, it also started breaking. They called it arthritis. They picked some herbs to help but I could see it getting worse.

“Promise me that you will keep on living, but also thanking everyone for your today. The rats, the fish, the trees… Everyone…”

“I promise.”

“Now go. See your tomorrow. When it is your time to join me in the soil, I promise that I will be waiting for you. I will give you all the ear scratches you could ever want.”

They have a serene smile on their face. I give them one last lick before I head off to my tomorrow.

I’ll be seeing them again soon, but I’m not afraid. Guthix will take care of both of us.


End file.
